Accessing CASS is a big deal, and should be fixed but you’re gonna need more than this to board an aircraft. Also… you can fix all the SQL issues, but you’re still not going to be able to fix the “men in hoodies with a big wrench talk to an authorized administrator (while their kids are kidnapped in Mexico)”
Bypassing airport security via SQL injection
311–320 of 459 posts
Re: Bypassing airport security via SQL injection
#312> We had difficulty identifying the right disclosure contact for this issue. We did not want to contact FlyCASS first as it appeared to be operated only by one person and we did not want to alarm them. Wait, what? Is this a euphemism for they didn't believe they would take it seriously? Reporting it over their heads to DHS was probably not less "alarming" to anyone...
Re: Bypassing airport security via SQL injection
#313Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'll say they are worthless because most of time they are dragging time away from things that could improve security. For example, $LastJob we spent a ton of time on SOC2 compliance and despite having applications with known vulnerabilities, we got hacked and ended up all over the news. Maybe of instead of spending all the time getting SOC2 compliance finished, we could have worked at upgrading those apps. Actually,…
SOC2 covers a set of vectors (mostly social/separation of controls from what I’ve seen), and you were attacked on another vector. Maybe the org prioritized poorly and sucks overall, but that doesn’t mean SOC2 or compliance generally is worthless.
But also you gotta have the balls to stand up to the guy pushing soc2 and say. No. There are known vulnerabilities. We are patching those first then we are doing soc2. The way I frame it is “we know we have critical vulnerabilities, we don’t need to go hunting for more till we fix them. Once we fix them we go looking for other ways to improve security posture” And if the ceo still insists (big client requires it so we’re doing soc2 simultaneously) you say fine, then hire a security consultant so we can go twice as fast. And if he refuses you quit because fuck that place.
Re: Bypassing airport security via SQL injection
#314Hilarious that the entire TSA system is vulnerable to the most basic web programming error that you generally learn to avoid 10 minutes into reading about web programming- and that every decent quality web framework automatically prevents. It is really telling that they try to cover up and deny instead of fix it, but not surprising. That is a natural consequence of authoritarian thinking, which is the entire premise…
Re: Bypassing airport security via SQL injection
#315Earlier quoted context omitted.
MS could have provided security hooks similar to BPF in Linux, and similar mechanisms with Apple, rather than having Crowdstrike run arbitrary buggy code at the highest privilege level.
They could have, however the timeline the regulators gave Microsoft to comply was incompatible with the amount of work required to build such system. With a legal deadline hanging over their heads Microsoft chose to hand over the keys to their existing tools.
Re: Bypassing airport security via SQL injection
#316Earlier quoted context omitted.
What was surprising to me was that they didn't immediately do pre-dawn raids on the pentesters' homes and hold them without a lawyer under some provision of an anti-terror law.
That's not really how this works. TSA is maliciously incompetent, but there is a reporting pipeline and procedure for these things that's formalized and designed to protect exactly this kind of good-faith reporting[1]. (It's very easy to believe the worst possible thing about every corner of our government, since every corner of our government has something bad about it. But it's a fundamental error to think that eve…
Re: Bypassing airport security via SQL injection
#317Hilarious that the entire TSA system is vulnerable to the most basic web programming error that you generally learn to avoid 10 minutes into reading about web programming- and that every decent quality web framework automatically prevents. It is really telling that they try to cover up and deny instead of fix it, but not surprising. That is a natural consequence of authoritarian thinking, which is the entire premise…
Re: Bypassing airport security via SQL injection
#318The TSA's response here is childish and embarrassing, although perhaps unsurprising given the TSA's institutional disinterest in actual security. It's interesting to see that DHS seemingly (initially) handled the report promptly and professionally, but then failed to maintain top-level authority over the fix and disclosure process.
I’ve seen huge issues, like exposed keys, being treated as a small issue. While an outdated js library, or lack of ip6 support being escalated.
I’m sure TSA and their partners wants to downplay potential exposure, I’m also sure it’s hard for a lot of their managers to fully understand what the vulnerability entails (most likely their developers are downplaying their responsibility and pointing fingers at others)
Re: Bypassing airport security via SQL injection
#319The safety of airports and air travel compromised by a simple SQL injection ? What is it, the year 2000 ? It should be a criminal offence for whoever developed that system.
To think otherwise is beyond naive.
Re: Bypassing airport security via SQL injection
#320Earlier quoted context omitted.
It doesn't seem particularly unique to TSA. Flying elsewhere in the world has essentially identical security screening, with all the same stupidity. I'm a little butthurt right now, in particular, about the security at Heathrow. They confiscated a bottle of whisky that we got in Edinburgh. After 10 minutes of head-scratching and consulting with a supervisor, they concluded that "it does not say 100ml" (it had "10cl"…
>It doesn't seem particularly unique to TSA. Flying elsewhere in the world has essentially identical security screening, with all the same stupidity. That's largely due to the US and 9/11. In fact, the US even pressures other countries into creating a separate mini TSA at their boarding gate for flights that fly into the US.
Some countries allow you to clear CBP on the boarding side, skipping it at the destination.
It's like Ireland/Dublin, Aruba and a few others.